Spidey Sense

Yesterday I brought in a desk my parents gave me for Lizzy. It has been sitting in our garage for about two weeks. After successfully dragging the desk in from the garage, I began opening the drawers and looking in them. Upon opening the bottom left drawer, I saw I had not just drug in a desk. I had also brought in a black widow spider sitting on a white egg sack. It wasn't moving, so I was hopeful it was dead, although doubtful, it looked very much alive. So, I called Mark and asked him to drive home from work to kill it, he could not do that, as he commutes 25 miles to Scottsdale. So he told me where the bug spray was, and I grabbed it, my camera and the vacuum. This is the part I really hate about being an adult and a homeowner, and a mom, there was no mom to scream for to help, I am the mom. Now I have to kill bugs, clean up throw up and pay the bills. It really sucks when it is the killing bug time and Mark is not around. So, I took a picture, because I figured nobody would believe the size of the egg sack. Then I got the spray in one hand, the vacuum in the other, and began to spray. I screamed as it began to move around. So I began to wack it with the vaccuum and finally I sucked it up with the vacuum and the egg sack. With the vacuum running I took it outside in case the spider was still alive in the vacuum. Then I hauled the whole desk back outside. I was planning on selling the desk along with the bed and dresser in Lizzy's room. It is an Ethan Allen that my mom had as a kid. I just figured maybe I'd have Lizzy use the desk for a little while until I could get my act together to list it on Craigs List. Well, now I am determined to get it on Craigs List soomer than later. Anyone know what an antique Ethan Allen kids bedroom set would go for?

Bella is ready for the bus.

Today Markie and Lizzy ran out the door for the bus and I said to Bella, do you want to go watch them get on the bus? Well, I think what she heard is, "Do you want to get on the bus?" She shot out the door with her Dora back pack on and was headed for the bus stop. She didn't seem to mind that she was in a diaper and her Elmo pajama top. She did have shoes on though. She was really bummed when I scooped her up as the bus arrived. She buried her head in my shoulder as I carried her home. When we got inside Elmo was on Sesame Street and she quickly forgot about the bus. I didn't have the heart to tell her she has to wait three more years to get on that bus.

Home Schooling Bella

Bella and I are doing some preschool activities now that the big yellow bus takes my other two away fro 7 hours a day. I have not enrolled in any mommie and me activities, don't have the desire to do any of that with the third. Bella loves to color, here she is coloring some big sponge bob pages.

Rock Band

We gave Mark Rock Band for the Wii for his birthday last night. His birthday is Thursday, but since I will be working the kids gave it to him last night. They had a great time playing it. Bella and Markie were really jamming to the music. It was fun to watch them. If you notice, Bella was wearing Markie's new sketchers too.

Lazy Sunday

Lizzy and Markie got their own kids rafts yesterday. Actually I gave them to them at the beginning of the summer, but we just put air in them yesterday. They enjoyed lounging around the pool in them. If you look close at the picture of Bella she has two carrots stuck in her mouth, she is immitating our big fish. He was eating his own carrot and had it stuck halfway out of his mouth. Our big fish loves carrots, and I guess Bella does too! Everyone loves the kitty, looks like we are sticking with the name smudge for now. Lizzy got her hand scratched yesterday, but seems to be surviving, she was quite dramatic about it at the time. Weekends have a new meaning now that school is in full swing. The kids love the weekend. Markie must have asked me 10 times yesterday morning if he had school, every time I said no he seemed quite pleased. This morning he was ready to go back, went happily onto the school bus! I still love watching that bus pull up and I know I have seven hours of freedom! Just me and Bella for seven hours........

Kip Cat attacks

Lizzy and Mark got a 3 month old kitty named smudge tonight from Petsmart. She has been very scared and hiding in Lizzy's room. She will only let me pet her, but finally Markie got up the nerve to pet her and this video is what happened. It is very funny as Ben and Lizzy were looking on. We are now calling Markie the bravest boy alive. We are calling the cat Kip Cat because Lizzy got her kip today at gymnastics and that is part of the reason we let her talk us into a new cat. Our animal tally at the house is up to two dogs, two cats, a snake and lots of fish.

More of Bella's B-Day

Bella had a great birthday party. It was very low key with just her cousins and Nick, who is pretty close to being her cousin (a good friend of all the kids). We started with swimming, moved on to her favorite, pizza and spaghetti. We followed dinner with pin the tail on the donkey, which Bella won, she is the only kid that didn't get blindfolded. Then we opened presents and had her Elmo cake. We closed the evening with a rip roaring game of Bingo complete with prizes for everyone. Alex is really starting to love spinning the wheel. It was a great afternoon. I don't know what to say about Bella, to know her is to love her. She is a fantastic kid and I am proud to be her mommie.

Diamondbacks on Bella's b-day

We went to the Diamondbacks game on Saturday night. We got tickets as part of a fundraiser for Lizzy's gym. We sat with a lot of friends from the gym, so that was fun, plus it was Bella's birthday! It was a lot of fun, Nancy and Tom came also. Bella really enjoyed the game, with lots of noise and excitement and all the popcorn she could eat, it was the perfect way to celebrate her second birthday! We followed up with an Elmo party at the house on Sunday with swimming, pin the tail on the donkey and lots of cake.

The bus! The bus!

Well, Markie and Lizzy got on the bus for the first time this morning. No tears from markie at all. He got on the bus and never looked back. I hope he is having a good first day of kindergarten. It is now two hours later and I don't know quite what to do with myself. I only have one left! I am in shock. I guess Bella and I will go to the gym. It is very quiet here now.

The perfect Storm

Picture of the island of Hawaii, where I'd have rather been.

I was on call for work this weekend, Fri - Sun I have to be available by phone for scheduling to call me to work each day from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. I typically get called out in the first hour I am on call and then don't have to worry about staying close to the phone, because I am off on a trip. Well, I sat all day Friday, sat all day Saturday, until about 3 p.m. when I decided to check my schedule on line, as I had been doing periodically all day, often they will post my trip before they call me and if I see it I have an early heads up and know they will be calling. When I checked my "screen" as we call it, mine said UTC for unable to contact. What??? I had been sitting at home for hours, my home line was open, my cell phone was within reach, how had they tried to contact me???? I quickly checked my answering machine and sure enough there was a message 27 minutes left 27 minutes earlier. We have 20 minutes to return the call. I missed it by 7. I called in to "scheduling" and since they hadn't assigned my trip to anyone else I was able to still work it and my UTC was converted to an FTR, failure to report. Basically, I only got one point added to my work record instead of 2 and a half. First time in 11 years I have "missed the call". The perfect storm because they called my home line while I was in Markie's room finishing sorting through his clothes in preparation for school, I never heard the phone or the machine. Perfect storm because they must have called my cell at the exact time Nancy was calling me, and their call went to voice mail and didn't show up as a missed call on my cell record. Perfect storm because the third number they contact is Mark's cell, and he was sitting at home also and somehow never heard his cell or the home line ring. Perfect storm and I am off to work with an extra poing on my record and my first UTC or FTR , I say, WTF??????